The always-helpful Amit Agarwal from Digital Inspiration rounds up several methods for skipping the trailers, warnings, and other crap on a DVD so you can get straight to the movie you're trying to watch. The first tip, from CNET author Tom Merritt, is the easiest. Just press Stop, Stop, then Play on many DVDs to skip right to the movie. This method won't always work, so if it doesn't, don't give up hope! If twice doesn't work, Salon.com's Richard Rider says pressing Stop three times, followed by Play, will do the trick.

Finally, if you're on a laptop or desktop computer, Lifehacker alum Rick Broida had this to say:

I popped in a DVD and fired up Windows Media Player. When the first splash screen appeared, I clicked the player's Stop button. Then I clicked Play, and the disc skipped ahead to the previews. I repeated the process - Stop, then Play - and it advanced to the FBI warning. I did it a third time and presto: I landed right on the movie's menu screen.

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These tricks may not work every time and with every DVD, but thank god for the times they do. Got a trick of your own that does the trick? Share it in the comments. Photo by bizmac.